Brand Manager

Job Description

Brand Manager

Join a trusted global Animal Health business and contribute to meaningful growth and innovation.

• Permanent, full-time position offering competitive remuneration and comprehensive benefits

• Location: New Zealand - Palmerston North, Hamilton, or Wellington (Upper Hutt)

• Work Environment: Join a supportive and collaborative team culture

• Career Growth: Develop your expertise within a thriving and expanding industry

• Professional Development: Gain valuable experience in a dynamic and evolving role

Role Overview

The Brand Manager is responsible for developing and executing marketing plans, including strategy, campaigns, and tactics across a broad marketing mix within our Animal Health Livestock Business. As the primary product specialist for your stream, you will drive growth in market share, sustainable sales, and profitability by applying company strategy, customer knowledge, and market trends. You will manage advertising and marketing budgets, oversee product management, lead product and range improvements, and introduce new products. Collaboration with other Brand Managers will ensure cross-portfolio opportunities are maximised. You will work closely with sales, customer services, technical/R&D, finance, procurement, and supply chain teams to achieve business outcomes.

This role requires a strong digital marketing focus and hands-on experience in the dairy sector, ideally including familiarity with milking sensors, collars, and dairy shed environments. You will be a proactive, execution-driven marketer who can implement strategies effectively and engage directly with farmers and industry stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead key marketing initiatives for your livestock brand range, with a strong emphasis on digital marketing campaigns and platforms

• Develop brand and marketing plans for key products and contribute to company strategy with the marketing team

• Implement marketing programmes to maximise sales and communicate strategic direction internally

• Conduct market research to inform brand strategies and measure campaign effectiveness, leveraging digital analytics where applicable

• Identify and develop opportunities across BioPharma, Identification, and Technology portfolios with internal stakeholders

• Manage product lifecycle, liaise with technical and R&D teams on pipeline and improvements, lead new product introductions, and identify portfolio gaps

• Lead pricing reviews with sales input

• Build budgets and inventory forecasts, forecast sales variances using industry, environmental, and customer insights, and coordinate with demand planning and procurement to ensure supply continuity and minimise stock obsolescence

• Collaborate with sales, marketing, and key account teams to plan and implement marketing activities

• Work with internal departments and agencies to develop advertising and point-of-sale materials

• Lead sales cycle planning and promote campaigns to the sales team

• Plan, coordinate, and participate in trade and consumer promotional events

• Stay current with marketing trends and innovations, particularly digital tools and technologies relevant to Animal Health and dairy farming

• Leverage digital platforms and maintain them with internal and agency partners

• Engage with farmers and industry groups to develop influencer campaigns and support sales activities at industry events

• Spend time with sales teams to gain customer insights and understand the dairy environment firsthand

• Review campaign effectiveness

• Manage advertising and promotional budgets, forecast spend, and demonstrate operational excellence

What You Must Have

• Tertiary education in marketing, business, or equivalent

• Solid marketing experience managing brands and executing brand plans with a strong digital marketing focus

• Experience in Animal Health, animal farming systems, or agricultural business highly desirable (dairy industry, including familiarity with milking sensors, collars, dairy sheds, and farming environments)

• Proven success creating campaigns across TV, radio, print, direct, in-field, influencer, email, digital, and social channels

• Experience using market research and data to build insights, develop brand positioning, personas, strategies, and campaigns

• Experience engaging industry bodies, key opinion leaders, and influencers

• Demonstrated experience launching new products and market-leading brands

• Ability to evaluate and report key metrics and campaign performance

• Strong collaboration and leadership skills

• Self-starter with initiative, able to work independently and in teams

• Project management skills to manage multiple projects

What You Can Expect

• Autonomy with Support: Take ownership of your work while benefiting from the guidance and encouragement of a trusted global leader in Animal Health.

• Professional Growth: Access opportunities to upskill and develop your expertise in a dynamic, evolving industry.

• Flexibility and Opportunity: Enjoy a flexible work environment that opens doors to broaden your skills and explore new career paths.

• Collaborative Culture: Join a supportive, like-minded team that values collaboration and shared success.

Join a global leader in Animal Health and elevate your marketing career. If you’re passionate about driving growth and innovation in the Livestock Business, particularly within the dairy sector, we want to hear from you.

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing diverse, talented, and committed people together. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when diverse ideas come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace.

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Required Skills:

Communication, Creative Campaign Development, Interpersonal Relationships, Marketing Data Analysis, Marketing Initiatives, Marketing Planning, Marketing Strategy Implementation, Market Research, Operational Excellence, Strategic Planning

Preferred Skills:

Job Posting End Date:

08/27/2025

• A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.
  

Requisition ID:R359067